April 2009
“Philosophy being nothing else but the study of wisdom and truth, it may with...”
– George Berkeley
Necessity of Trials
In The Illiad, Achilles laments the death of Patroclus, saying,
“If only strife could die from the lives of gods and men.”
To this cry, Heraclitus responds,
“He did not see that he was praying for the destruction of the whole; for if his prayers were heard, all things would pass away.”
Opposition in All Things
Strife, opposition, war.
These are all elevated, universal principles.
A guitar will provide music, but only if there is tension on the strings.
Without this opposition, there is no music.
Think of a river.
It is the force of flowing water struggling with the opposing forces of the containing banks.
Without the opposition between the banks and the river, there would be no river.
Consider...
“When they see the absolute reality of their non-absolute world, I will not be...”
– Hugh Akston
(Atlas Shrugged, 681)
John Talbot: Artist, potter, roomate →
My rommate John is a potter. His is an amazing gift that he wishes to share with the world. John says: “My work is hand turned fully functional stoneware pottery. Everything I throw is lead free and microwave, dishwasher and oven safe. Much of my art is made specifically to be used in the oven, for example my pie dishes. The beauty of hand turned dishware is that when you eat from a dish...
Further thoughts on Absolute Knowledge in...
There is this prevailing ideology amongst most people today that there cannot be any such thing as absolute knowledge, absolute truth, absolute anything, etc. It stems from the philosophical grounds of universal flux. We think to ourselves, “The world is constantly undergoing change. Nothing is permanent, nothing fixed. Everything is illusory and therefore cannot be relied upon.” These thoughts...
“There is no absolute knowledge. And those who claim it, whether they are...”
– Jacob Bronowsk (via matthewcolvin)
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Is it true that one absolutely knows that there is no absolute knowledge? If we are quick to admit yes, the statement falls prey to the logical fallacy of...
Uncanny Resemblance: The Rand Christ
Imagine Henry Rearden as Jesus, Francisco d’ Anconia as Satan (Funny, I know, right?—for those who know the story)
The Setting: Garden of Gethsemane
Performance: The Atonement
Rearden carries the load of an unearned punishment, like Atlas, like Jesus, crushing weight bearing upon his shoulders, warping his fragile eggshell body as he reflects upon the parasites who leech off the...
WatchFish Hands
Good friend, Chris Duce, made this.
WatchTHE MIND/BODY DEBATE
Can we know the external world exists?
matthewcolvin:
donamajicshow:
(Insert a bunch of philosophy quotes)
It seems like you only attack word usage and not the actual ideas put forward in the video. A cop out, I think, to get hung up in semantics and not content.
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Words are...
School is an auxiliary function that orders and...
Excellent Article on Demythologization →
By A.J.Grant
Finally, a mythology scholar who strips away the supernatural framework of religious texts.
“…and if they supposed me to be deluded to have endeavored in proper and...”
– Joseph Smith
Qualms with Rand
I think Ayn Rand is an exceptional philosopher, especially in regards to her metaphysics and epistemology: the only two (of 5) branches of Objectivism I strongly agree with. In fact, I haven’t been influenced more by any other philosopher I’ve studied than Rand. However, the more of Atlas Shrugged I read, the more convinced I am of what a lousy literary writer she is. She spends page...
“There is a profound tendency to make of our scientists “philosopher...”
– -M. Scott Peck
(People of the Lie)
“Man does not live alone by reason.”
– Nietzsche
Religious Demythologization: Ancient and...
Here we have our present age…Man today, stripped of myth, stands famished among all his pasts and must dig frantically for roots.
-Nietzsche
The contemporary movement of religious demythologization in philosophic discourse is nothing new. At its fundamental core, religious demythologization entails stripping away the supernatural, mythic framework of religious texts in order to arrive at a...
Writing the Devil
Writing the devil is no easy thing. You usually fall into writing stereotyped, arch-villains that are far too extravagant and cause people to laugh at how melodramatic and supernatural you are.
Screenwriting as Birthing
Although it is true that men cannot get pregnant and have escaped the pangs of child-intensive-labor, men who choose the life and vocation of a screenwriter have willingly subjected themselves to the life of a pregnant, motherly woman. Screenwriting is like giving birth. The idea you think is Academy Award Winning starts out like a small, underdeveloped seed that swims in embryonic, chaotic...
The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On Review
From the mere title alone, The Emperor’s Naked Army Marches On is the true-life documentary of obsessive, army-in-one war veteran, Kenzo Okuzaki, and his march to unclothe the truth of certain events during World War II. Okuzaki is a severely committed, subservient, even violent disciple of truth. Thirty years after the war and having been in and out of prison, he travels great lengths to reveal...
Silent Films
Silent films discipline our ability to discern character motives/attitudes. They help us recognize and understand the subtext of a character’s body language. They teach us how to strengthen our gift of discernment.
Brandon in Wonderland
~Listen to the absurdity that surrounds you~
You’re floating on a gigantic rock coined “earth.”
On that earth is cyclical order: seasons come, rivers run and tides ebb and flow.
You walk, talk and eat food.
You sleep, defecate, cry and spew.
You laugh at words written and say you understand, well do you?
Hah! You’re a silly little meat puppet too,
why wear these...
